Dengue fever is rapidly spreading in the densely populated Gampaha and Colombo districts, and health officials fear that an outbreak will outnumber the previous year’s total of 72 deaths and 76,000 patients.
So far this year, 32,000 people have died, with the majority of them in the Western Province.
This week, President Ranil Wickremesinghe directed all Provincial Chief Secretaries to take immediate precautionary measures to halt the spread of dengue.
He also instructed armed forces and police to get involved in provincial-level dengue control programmes. Heads of Government institutions and schools were told to check and clean up mosquito breeding sites.
Provincial health authorities were told to check houses and shops in urban and rural areas, make public announcements, and visit areas where patients have been detected.
According to Health Ministry’s Dengue Control Unit, dengue mosquitoes are multiplying in Attanagalle, Biyagama, Wattala, Ragama, Mirigama, Minuwangoda, Mahara, Dompe, Negombo MC, Kelaniya, Katana, Ja-ela, Divulapitiya, Gampaha in Gampaha district.
In Gampaha District, six deaths have been reported from Ragama, Ja-ela, Attanagalle, Dompe and Mahara, while the highest number of hospital admissions is from Negombo, Wattala, and Kelaniya.
According to District Health Director Dr. Indika Wanninayake, 541 patients have been identified in May. Among them are 34 children. The majority are being treated at Government and private hospitals in Negombo and Ragama.
“Health authorities have checked 60,990 places this month. Over 1,200 places have been breeding mosquitoes and legal action has been taken against 522 premises and 1,412 red notices have been issued,” he said.
Twenty-five percent of breeding sites are factories, while 12% are places of worship, 9% are tuition classes and 8% schools, Dr. Wanninayake said.
“Factories and construction sites can be major breeding sites if not cleaned and maintained. Similarly, lodgings, quarters, and tuition classes carry the risk,” said Dr. Nimalka Pannilahetti, of the Health Ministry’s Dengue Control Unit.
She said as the mosquito can harbour the dengue virus for about a week, there is a possibility of clusters occurring.
“If there is a dengue patient, the neighbours, especially if living in apartments, hostels and housing units should be extra vigilant,” she warned.